The branch of legal philosophy concerned with the history of the first principles and conceptions of a legal system, dealing with (1) the general principles governing the origin and development of law, and (2) the origin and development of the legal system’s first principles.
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universal-inheritance rule. Wills & estates. A doctrine holding that an intestate estate escheats to the state only if the decedent leaves no surviving relatives, no matter how distant. • Through the first half of the 20th century, this rule was broadly followed in American jurisdictions. The Uniform Probate Code abandons the universal-inheritance rule and provides
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encumbrance, n. A claim or liability that is attached to property or some other right and that may lessen its value, such as a lien or mortgage; any property right that is not an ownership interest. • An encumbrance cannot defeat the transfer of possession, but it remains after the property or right is transferred.
answer, n. 1. A defendant’s first pleading that addresses the merits of the case, usu. by denying the plaintiff’s allegations. • An answer usu. sets forth the defendant’s defenses and counterclaims. [Cases: Pleading 76–87. C.J.S. Pleading §§ 159–162, 164, 168–173.] false answer. A sham answer in a pleading. See sham pleading under PLEADING (1). [Cases:
A limitation to female heirs. [Cases: Estates in Property 12; Wills 605. C.J.S. Estates §§ 22–27; Wills § 1259.]
Hist. A writ issued in a county having venue of an action in order to allow a writ of capias ad satisfaciendum or of fieri facias to be executed in a county where the defendant or the defendant’s property was found. • These two writs could not be executed in a county other than the
(leks fyoor-ee-[schwa] tes-t[schwa]-men-tair-ee-[ schwa]). [Latin] Roman law A law prohibiting a testator from bequeathing more than 1,000 asses (i.e., 722 pounds) of copper or the equivalent. • This law, dating from the middle of the republic, was one of the first to restrict legacies. It was passed between 204 and 169 B.C.
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lawgiver. 1. A legislator, esp. one who promulgates an entire code of laws. 2. A judge with the power to interpret law. — lawgiving, adj. & n. “John Chipman Gray in his The Nature and Sources of the Law (1921) repeats a number of times a quotation from Bishop Hoadley [1676–1761]: ‘Whoever hath an absolute
Colonial Office 〈英〉殖民部 负责任命殖民地总督等官员并与之联络的国家机关。1854年以前，对殖民地事务和军事合并管理，但克里米亚战役〔Crimean War〕之后，另任一名国务大臣专门负责军事管理。殖民部现已并入外交及联邦事务部〔Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs〕。 (→secretary of state)